Tornadoes of 2017 (Semi-official)
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 2017, primarily (but not entirely) in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally, particularly in parts of neighboring southern Canada during the Northern Hemisphere's summer season. Some tornadoes also take place in Europe, e. g. in the United Kingdom or in Germany. This year was the least active overall, with 819 tornadoes being confirmed worldwide. Peak activity occurred in April; with other months of significant activity including May, July, and December. __TOC__ Statistics United States Europe January 'January 5-6' On the evening of January 5, a series of destructive tornadoes impacted areas in Mississippi and Alabama, resulting in multiple fatalities and major damage across densely populated areas. During that evening, a large EF4 wedge tornado touched down in extreme western Lee County with major damage occurring in Tupelo. The Tupelo tornado completely destroyed numerous homes and vehicles along its path and killed 19 people. The parent storm system went on to produce several other tornadoes across the Southern United States into the next day. Overall, the storm system produced 31 tornadoes, along with significant snowfall and flooding. February March 'March 14' A small and short lived tornado outbreak produced four tornadoes across Wyoming, the strongest of which were rated EF2. Both of these EF2 tornadoes caused 10 and 2 deaths respectively, resulting in 12 fatalities overall. Casper was hardest hit, having over 200 homes either damaged or destroyed. 'March 15' An event hastened by the passage of Winter Storm Wyatt that also fueled a tornado outbreak Wyoming on the previous day occurred in Tennessee on March 15, with the worst damage occurring in Nashville. On that day, twelve tornadoes swept through Middle Tennessee—two of them touching down in Nashville, causing significant damage to the downtown and East Nashville areas. Nashville became the first major city in nearly 6 years to have an EF2 or larger tornado make a direct hit in the downtown area. 17 people were killed by tornadoes during the outbreak, twelve of which were in the Nashville city limits. April Exceptional tornado activity took place across the United States in April, most notably with 220 tornadoes touching down within a 9 day period due to two distinct outbreaks. April 22 became the third most prolific day on record in terms of tornadoes confirmed, with 124 tornadoes touching down from midnight to midnight. 'April 13-17' The first significant event of the year began on April 13 and ended on April 17. A large weather complex formed from typical spring-time conditions that result in tornadic conditions during the spring and early summer. 96 tornadoes, including 3 EF5s, touched down across 12 states in the Southern and Midwestern regions of the United States, killing 255 people over the 4 days the system was active, and causing billions in damages. 'April 22' On April 22, a strong tornado outbreak affected the states of Illinois and Indiana, resulting in 124 tornadoes on that day, though the last tornado of the outbreak dissipated after midnight on April 23. The EF5 tornado recorded in this outbreak hit Coal City. 1,233 deaths were attributed to this outbreak, and over $1 billion in damages was reported. May There were 176 confirmed tornadoes in the US in the month of May. 'May 6-8' The first week of May was the most active throughout the whole month due to a devastating and destructive tornado outbreak in the Central Plains that occurred from May 6 to 8. The worst affected towns included: Vinitia, Oklahoma; Fairbury, Nebraska; Lola, Kansas; Derby, Kansas; and Parsons, Kansas. 'May 23' The 2017 Florida tornado outbreak was an unusual tornado outbreak primarily in Central Florida which occurred on May 23, 2017. The EF5 tornado that struck the city of Mount Dora, Florida killed 245 people out of 12,534 residents. The tornado was 3/4 of a mile (1.2 km) wide and tracked across the ground for 7.2 miles (12.2 km). Lake and Golf Realty, a subdivision of Mount Dora, was literally wiped off the map with all 518 homes and several businesses destroyed, as well as much of northeastern portion of town. 'May 29' On May 29, a violent tornado outbreak devastated some areas in north and central Oklahoma from the night of May 29th to the early morning hours of the following day on May 30. Two EF5 tornadoes occurred during this outbreak: one in Silverton during the afternoon, and another in Wakita during the early morning of May 30. 71 people were killed as a result of this outbreak. June There were 176 confirmed tornadoes in the US in the month of June. 'June 4' On June 4, a small but deadly tornado outbreak was caused by a lone supercell thunderstorm which resulted in an EF5 tornado striking Moore and Shawnee; with all 180 fatalities being attributed to this particular tornado. Another tornado, rated EF3, moved through Oklahoma City, damaging many homes and injured 4 people, but resulted in no fatalities. 'June 7' In the early morning hours on June 7, a line of thunderstorms impacting the Hudson Valley and New York City areas organized and strengthened, becoming a squall line consisting of severe thunderstorms, quickly producing multiple hook echos visible on radar. At 4:32 AM, the first tornado was reported, a small EF1 that impacted Bear Mountain. The squall produced more tornadoes while virtually remaining in the same area; slowly drifting south. The storms strengthened after crossing into New Jersey as the day progressed, eventually producing the strongest tornado of this outbreak at 1:34 PM, which was rated high-end EF4. This storm continued to produce tornadoes until 10:49 PM, when the last tornado dissipated. 'June 16-17' During the late morning of June 16, 2017, a line of supercells started forming across eastern Colorado, far eastern New Mexico, southeast Wyoming and southwest Nebraska. The first tornado of the outbreak was recorded in western Kansas 12:41 PM CDT. Over the next eight hours, numerous tornadoes tornadoes touched down before the storms gradually consolidated into a MCS that brought widespread damaging wind gusts and additional tornadoes to areas farther east during the overnight hours. After the initial line of storms passed through, a weaker secondary line of storms formed behind it and produced about a dozen more tornadoes, some of which struck places that had already been impacted by the first wave of storms. This second wave quickly dissipated after sunset. 'June 28 (Italy)' An EF4 tornado impacted the city of Rome, causing major damage throughout the city. Hundreds of buildings were badly damaged or destroyed, many of which were leveled. Many trees were defoliated, snapped, and partially debarked, and numerous cars were tossed and damaged. The tornado was on the ground for 37 minutes, and caused $365 million (USD) in damages. There were 73 injuries and 48 fatalities from this tornado in total. July July was unusually active, with 177 tornadoes being confirmed throughout the month. 'July 4' On the morning of July 4, a localized outbreak of seven tornadoes impacted Oklahoma and Kansas. A few of these tornadoes caused considerable damage to homes in their path, most of which were rated EF1. One particular storm caused a tornado warning to be put into effect for Moore due to a confirmed tornado to the west of Chickasha. Though no tornadoes impacted Moore, a second tornado from this storm did touch down just south of Oklahoma City, causing EF1 damage. The most significant tornado of the event was a half-mile wide EF3 that heavily damaged numerous homes, completely destroyed many garages and outbuildings, and snapped numerous trees in Canton. Five people were killed in this tornado. A second rope tornado developed northeast of Canton and paralleled the initial tornado for 1 mile, causing no damage. The last tornado of the outbreak was a half mile wide EF2 tornado that tracked 5.1 miles after touching down west-northwest of Greensburg, Kansas, causing damage to a trailer park in its path. August September October November December There were 54 confirmed tornadoes in the United States in December. Category:Outbreaks Category:Tornadoes of 2017 Category:Tornadoes